Domestic deliveries of finished lubricants in Germany plummeted 39% in October, compared to the same month of 2023, an especially weak performance in a down year for the country’s lube market.
Domestic deliveries in October totaled 27,517 kiloliters, according to the Federal Office for Economic Affairs and Export Control, compared to 45,300 kL in October of 2023. The biggest driver was a steep drop for the market’s biggest product category, automotive engine oils.
Through the first 10 months of the year, domestic deliveries of lubes were 428,372 kL, 11% less than the same period of 2023.
Germany is the biggest economy in the European Union and one of its biggest finished lube markets. The country’s gross domestic product contracted slightly last year, though, and lubricant demand usually roughly tracks overall economic activity.
Deliveries of automotive engine oils sank 73% in October to 4,259 kL and were down 29% year-to-date. Machine oils were also among the categories to lose the most ground, dropping 89% to 203 kL, and deliveries of hydraulic fluids fell 47% to 1,443 kL.
Electrical insulating oils were the only big gainer, as deliveries jumped 71% to 1,375 kL. Deliveries of compressor oils rose 5% to 953 kL.